The Offseason Plan

THE SETUP

Here is my best guess as to what the Flyers base lineup will be.

Notes to this chart
-Nearly all of these salary numbers are final, except for Bourdon and Voracek.  They are RFAs, and I have guessed at salaries for them
-Pronger, Kubina, Carle and Jagr are not in this lineup.
-A salary cap of $69 million, which is a number that has been thrown around.  Obviously with the CBA expiring things could get interesting regarding the cap.


THE ISSUES

-Is Jagr coming back?
That is the first question to answer.  If the season ended in January, I would say definitely.  He looked tired and beat up as the season carried on though, and his role was reduced.  Jagr loved everything about playing for the Flyers this year, and he sounds like he wants one more year in the NHL, but he won't sign here unless he feels he will get significant minutes.  He signed with the Flyers against expectations last year because he thought it was a good "hockey fit", and he will leave if that "hockey fit" no longer applies.

-The Defense
By signing Grossmann to an extension, the Flyers took care of their top offseason priority in April.  That seems like a decent contract, provided his knees hold up.  The Flyers still need help back here though, with Pronger seemingly done, and Timonen is at the end of his career, undersized, and has not survived an 82 game season without sustaining performance-inhibiting injuries the last 2 seasons.
I don't think Carle will be back, because someone will be willing to give him $5m+ a year for several years, and I don't think the Flyers should be that team.  You never know though with the way Clarke is talking. There's also a (very) small chance Timonen could retire, freeing up his $6.3m salary, and the Flyers could chase Suter for big money.
Lastly, I've seen spitballing the Flyers could trade for someone like Weber, would involve trading significant assets.  Such a move fits the Flyers MO, and while it would hurt to trade away more picks and young forwards, a defense corps with Coburn, Carle and Weber could be rock solid for several years.  So many variables to that though...

-Size up front
The Flyers score a ton of goals, but their forward corps is small and not very physical.  A big body for the 2/3rd line (who plays big) would balance the roster.

-Goaltending
Nothing to discuss here really.  Bryzgalov did not have a good year overall, but I expect improvement next year now that he knows what to expect in Philly.  His instincts with the media are wrong for the town, but he's figuring it out.
If you recall, at the end of February, Bryzgalov made comments about "finding the peace in his soul" to play in this city.  Most commented that this was a very troubling sign reflecting a discouraged player, and I said it was a good sign.  For the record, on the day of that comment, Bryzgalov's save percentage stood at .898.  After that comment, he had a spectacular month of March and had a .929 save percentage for the remainder of the season.  He will still makes gaffes, but now he knows the lay of the land in Philly and will be better for it.


THE PLAN

There are a ton of ways you could go, but this is what I would do:

-Trade JVR, preferably for an up-and-coming dman.  I'm not sure what the trade value of JVR is right now, and if it's diminished in the last few months, but surely the Flyers could make a "hockey trade" for a talented young defenseman whose career is also experiencing less than an exponential growth.  Personally, I don't see JVR as a player who will ever consistently perform at all-star level, and the team needs defense more than another skating forward.
JVR could also be the centerpiece of a larger deal for a prominent defensemen.

-Sign a rugged 2/3 line winger to fill JVR's now vacant spot in the top nine.  Unfortunately there aren't many such candidates out there on the UFA market, though Shane Doan, Ryan Smyth, Paul Gaustad, Dustin Penner, Alexei Ponikarovsky, Travis Moen and Daniel Winnik might be worth looking into.

-If you can skillfully pull these two things off, the Flyers will still have $3-7 million in cap space to play with, allowing for other signings or taking salary in a trade that could further bolster the defense.

-Make an executive order for system adjustments.  I've been beating this drum for a few months.  I was really hoping that, as a silver lining to a deep Flyers cup run, would be to buck the trend of tight defense in the NHL today.  Alas, look at the teams left in the playoffs; LA (2nd in goals against, and they eliminated VAN and STL who were 4th and 1st respectively), Phoenix (5th), NY (3rd), NJ (9th) and the Caps, who are 21st but only because they started a season with a different coach.  Clutch-and-grab is creeping back into the game.
I also believe Bryzgalov will look like a different goalie in a defense-first scheme.  This is how he did it in PHX, and his clear weaknesses are side-to-side movement and shot recovery.  Defense-first is the way the wind is blowing, and could maximize the talent the Flyers have.  Can Lavy make that adjustment?  If the team is still leaking goals and looking unspectacular in December, his seat will begin to get hot.

Major Headaches

A lot has changed quickly in the current concussion storyline.  A week ago, I probably would've posted somewhat lightheartedly about the Flyers concussion disclosure history--trying to explain away injuries as neck soreness, dehydration, and now with Pronger, a mystery virus.  It's not that Pronger's and Giroux's uncertain issues weren't serious, but there was the expectation that they'd be back sooner or later.

All that has changed.  Pronger has now been diagnosed with severe post concussion syndrome, and is out for the season.  And in direct contradiction of his previous statements, Holmgren discloses that Giroux's symptoms have actually been getting worse every day.

Holmgren on December 12: "Claude is continuing to feel better"
Holmgren on December 13: "Claude reported not feeling very good today. Over the past few days, his symptoms have gradually gotten worse. He will be out indefinitely with a concussion."

While the Flyers continue to pile up wins on the ice and sit in first place, the season is in a very delicate place.  The Flyers aren't the only ones with concussion issues, as recent names added to the concussion casualty list include Sidney Crosby (the best player in the league), Jeff Skinner (reigning rookie of the year), and Milan Michalek (NHL leading goal scorer).

For the wins to keep on coming, several players will have to contribute to the best of their abilities.  The current winning streak is largely thanks to goal scoring streaks from Hartnell and Simmonds, quality goaltending from Bryz and Bob, and quality playmaking from Jagr and Voracek.  (Take note Flyers fans, but with Giroux out of the lineup, Hartnell is the team's leading scorer!)   The Flyers have also gotten some bounces, and understandably, the Caps more or less gave up the other night when they conceded the second goal of the game to Bourdon from Rinaldo and Shelley.


What to do about Pronger
Tangibly, Pronger brought three things to the Flyers; veteran leadership, defensive anchoring, and a power play presence.  As the Flyers try to fill those holes, it would be impossible to do all three in one player, and even getting two would be a stretch.  I think the Flyers will not even try to fill the leadership void from the outside, and focus on the defensive and power play shortcomings. 

First you have to assess the cap space.  Presuming the Flyers approach the stretch with the following lineup, my math says they would be spending $60.08 against the cap;

Hartnell       Giroux     Jagr            Meszaros    Carle         Bryzgalov
Simmonds   Briere      Read          Timonen    Coburn        Bobrovsky
Voracek      Talbot      JVR           Bourdon    Lilja       
Harry Z       Cooter    Schenn       Gustafsson           
Rinaldo       Shelley                    

That leaves the Flyers with just over $4 million to play with in cap space, assuming they don't cut or trade away anyone.

On the power play end of things, a guy like Bryan McCabe is unsigned, and might sign for very little ($1 million?).  He's a flawed player, but a PP specialist.  I also saw Marc Crawford suggest the Flyers trade for Sergie Gonchar this morning, possibly shipping out Schenn, but I'm not crazy about trading Schenn before he's ever had a chance with this team for a 37 year old defensemen signed for $5.5 this year and next.

It's also a little early for teams to decide they are going to be sellers, and looking to unload their pending UFAs, so it's hard to speculate what else is available by trade.

Long story short, the Flyers have a few million dollars to plug holes, but they have to decide if they are willling to trade picks and prospects, and which need is more pressing--PP or defensive help.  The most likely scenario is a trade for defensive defensemen I think.

Realignment Proposal

Last night, by a vote of 26-4 the NHL Board of Governors approved a proposal to reformat the NHL into 4 conferences.  It is as follows:

The Flyers conference is essentially the same as their old division, except the Caps and Canes are added to the mix.  It doesn't seem like much change, but there are two key changes in this format.

One, for regular season play, you have a home and home with every out-of-conference team.  That means every team in league will visit Philadelphia, which is fun for the fans to see every team.  The flip side of that is that the Flyers will only play teams which they have out of division testy relationships, like the Sabres or Leafs. twice a year; the same amount they will see a team like the Calgary Flames

The second key point is that the first two rounds of playoffs will be within conference, seeded 1-4.  The Flyers will see a team like Pens in the playoffs A LOT.  After the first two rounds, the teams are re-seeded based on points for the last two rounds.

It will be interesting to see how the balance plays out, as it seems some conferences should be perennially stronger than others.  Based on last year's standings, this is how the playoffs would've looked and may have gone:

Round 1: Caps v. Rangers, Philly v. Pittsburgh, Boston v. Buffalo, TB v. Montreal, Vancouver v. Phoenix, SJ v. Anaheim, Detroit v. Dallas, Nashville v. Chicago

Round 2: Philly v. Rangers, Boston v. TB, Vancouver v. SJ, Detroit v. Chicago

Round 3: Vancouver v. Boston, Philly v. Detroit

Round 4: Boston v. Detroit

Not shockingly different, for this season anyway.  15 out of the 16 teams would've maintained their playoff position, with LA losing out to Dallas as a result of the realignment.

This system is what it is, some positives some negatives.  My biggest concern is the strong possibility of seeing the same playoff matchups over and over and over.  Detroit and Chicago is all well and good, but what if they play each other 5 or 6 years in a row?  

Back to the Flyers
Sometimes a team needs a few breaks to get them going, after which time they will make their own breaks.  The game against the Ducks is such an example.  The Flyers were simply playing poorly.  Maybe it was the layoff between games, but the Flyers looked slow and out of sorts.  Fortunately the Ducks just kept getting penalties and eventually the Flyers broke through.  Timonen made a few great plays, the Flyers scored on a long 5-on-3, and got the game-winner on a 4 minute OT 4-on-3 PP.  Once the good vibes started, the Flyers carried it over and whipped the Coyotes the next night.  The absence of Pronger will hurt (especially on the PP, despite the last two games), but it's time the Flyers start evening out their play this season.

Schenn also looks to me to be playing with more confidence.  He's clearly a smooth puck handler, and will excel with the puck on his stick.  For that reason, the Flyers may to do well to put him at center.  His stat line currently stands at 6 game played, 0 points, -6.  He was killing it in the AHL so there's no reason to send him back, and the points will come, but I'd put him in the center with a skill winger.  JVR maybe.

Monthly Update

Another month has passed, and things are more uncertain in Flyerdom.  First the season numbers;

Goals - 3.48/game (1st, +1 spot from last month)
Goals against - 2.91/g (19th, +9)
Faceoffs - 46.9% (29th, even)
Power play - 17.6% (12th, -6)
Penalty kill - 83.5% (14th, +4)
Shots For - 31.5/g (8th, -2)
Shots Against - 28.7 (7th, -5)

Watching the Flyers, one wouldn't think they've tightened up defensively, but there's the numbers for goals against.  Even with the improvement, they are still in the bottom half of the league.  That's something that needs to be addressed, as they are still prone to look awful in their own end--it happened in the first period against the Islanders and Jets, two of the worst teams in the league.

The  real story of late is Pronger's newest surgery.  Putting aside the ridiculousness of the Flyers injuries reports and treatments, and that after missing a week with "a virus" he will have knee surgery, this is getting into scary territory with Pronger's health.  Last year, he missed most of January, March, and the playoffs.  This year, he missed training camp, and now is out again.  I believe he is up to 5 surgeries since summer 2010.

Before the season I wrote that the Flyers should be concerned about relying on three, injury prone veterans; Pronger, Timonen and Jagr.  Well here we are, with Pronger out for a month and Jagr with a groin issue.  Timonen also will be forced to increase his minutes, raising his risk of injury.  There's not really anything the Flyers can do about this now, but this should make all Flyers fans very nervous.  Is Pronger's body breaking down?  Repeated knee and back issues certainly suggest as much.  Personally, I don't think the Flyers can make a playoff run with Pronger in and out of the lineup, so let's hope that's not the case.

The Flyers need Meszaros and Carle to step up.  Actually, they need Meszaros just to return to his form last year.  This year he has made a lot of coverage errors down low, though Meszaros has the combination of size and skill of a top pair defensemen if he can steady his play.  Timonen is a wily player, but a 36 year old, 5'10" defensemen can only take so much abuse.

Other Notes
-Nodl was waived, then claimed by Carolina.  I shed no tears, as I have pretty much run out of patience with Nodl.  When he came up I was pretty impressed with his skating and defensive responsibility, which are often two big question marks with young scorers.  Time, however, has shown that he can't score at the pro level.  Aside from a good start last year, he has been a total offensive black hole.  He was nothing more than an extra body for the Flyers forward corps, and with the emergence of Read, Couturier, Rinaldo, and Harry Z, he was spare parts.

-With the Ducks off to a terrible start, a change was coming.  The only question was if the change would be a trade (likely Bobby Ryan) or a coaching change.  We now know it was the coach.  The Flyers' name always came up for Ryan, a player they've always liked.  Former number 2 pick, from South Jersey with ties to the organization, power forward, 3 straight 30 goal season, still only 24...there's a lot to like there.  It made little sense from an organizational standpoint though.  Simply put, the Flyers are up against the cap--why would they add a big scorer salary (which would require other salary dumps to accommodate) when they have no problem scoring?  They need defensemen.

I saw a rumor today on the internet (which may be completely false) that the Flyers had agreed to trade Schenn and 2 picks for Ryan, but Boudreau would only sign as a coach if Ryan was still there.  I have my doubts about this whole scenario, but stranger things have happened.  Presumably, the Ryan trade talk will cool down for everyone for a while, and I just want to see Schenn play for the Flyers.  Fortunately that will start tonight.

A Breath of Fresh Air

The new season is days away, and the feeling around the team is palpably different.  The team hierarchy is  clear cut.  After a few seasons of Mike Richards being the face of the team (aka Captain Mumbles), the leadership burden falls on players who are very comfortable in their own skin; Pronger, Bryzgalov, Timonen and Jagr.  All of these players deal with the media and pressure effortlessly, and Pronger and Bryzgalov will be competing for the better quotes all season long.

I think it's hard for Flyers fans not to be excited with how this preseason went.  First of all, Jagr and Bobrovsky turned a lot of heads.  Apparently Jagr is training fanatically, returning to the rink for late nights skates in a weighted jacket, and his preseason performance is raising expectations.  I said previously that I wouldn't be surprised at all to see him hit 60 points, but many are now speculating him to hum along at a point/game pace alongside Giroux.

Also, Wayne Simmonds scoring 4 goals in the preseason has been a nice surprise.  I think he has been an under-appreciated acquisition this summer, and that he has the potential to be a fan favorite with his physical initiative.  Still, he only scored 30 points last year, so it was unclear how many points the Flyers could expect from him this year, but early indications point him to getting PP time.

The flip side of the coin is that Schenn and Voracek have had anonymous preseasons.  For Schenn, that could mean a start in the AHL.  While disappointing, this is not the end of the world.  Giroux and Spezza, for example, did the same, and things worked out pretty well for them.  Starting Schenn in the AHL would save the Flyers a lot of cap space too.  Voracek's ice time is assured, but he will drift into Laviolette's doghouse if he doesn't get going.  Fingers crossed there.

Overall it's an exciting time for Flyers fans.  I think this year's team ceiling is a little lower than last year's squad, which was kicking butt in January, however the chances of a crisis of confidence that afflicted last year's team are also lower.  Better goaltending, steadier leadership....etc.  I think the biggest problem facing the Flyers is that most of their players are still pretty young (JVR, Giroux, Simmonds, Voracek) or at the end of their careers and are at a great injury risk (Pronger, Timonen, Jagr).  A few key injuries could be devastating.

The final roster will be announced tomorrow, so I'm just going to wait and see on that one rather than prognosticate.  Maybe I'm getting lazy....

The Day After

Just a few thoughts now that the initial shock has worn off.

-Trading both Richards and Carter seems to lend credence to the idea that there were locker room issues with the young players on this team.  Going back even further, every last piece of the "Old City Crew" has been shipped out; Upshall, then Lupul, now Richards and Carter.  Seems a long time ago Stevens was coaching that big group of young forwards.

-I have to assume Pronger will be named the captain, as he kind of assumed the role of de facto captain last year anyway.

-As much as I like the deal, Simmonds, Voracek and Schenn will not be able to match the outgoing production of Richards and Carter this year.  They are still young and developing, and are where Richards and Carter were a few years ago.  Can they develop quick enough to win before Timonen and Pronger get too old?

-I really don't think I'll miss Carter too much, but the Richards trade does make me a little nervous.  Richards looked out of shape to me down the stretch this year, but he can still do a little bit of everything and never quits.  All is well if Schenn develops as most expect he will, and he's not a dissimilar player to Richards.  However if Schenn fizzles by any significant amount, the Flyers will have traded their captain in his prime and not have too much to show for it.

-Apparently the Flyers almost sent Richards to the Leafs for Kulemin and Kadri, but the Leafs couldn't make up their mind.  Also the Flyers apparently asked for Ryan Johansen, another center (and #2 on hockeysfuture.com top prospects behing Schenn) from Columbus.  Maybe if Columbus had given in on Johansen the Flyers wouldn't have traded for Schenn?  Who knows, who cares.

-There are some ridiculous rumors floating around about the Flyers chasing Brad Richards or Steven Stamkos.  I can't imagine it.  The Flyers opened up some cap space, but not that much cap space.  Future acquisitions should be to round out the chemistry of the forwards at reasonable prices, not expensive high-end players.  Cole, Gagne...etc.

-I'd also try and get Leino back because of his chemistry with Briere.  People forget how much this team relied on that line up through January, because quite frankly Richards, Carter, and Pronger were having pretty sleepy seasons.

-The team is placing the offense into Claude Giroux's hands.  He is the new franchise center, a role he seemingly was eager to accept this season anyway.  With any luck, Schenn will be there supporting him sooner rather than later.

-The only thing the Flyers didn't address yesterday was young defensemen.  Presumably the Flyers will take a defensemen with the #8 pick, though personally I would even look for a deal to trade Versteeg+#8 pick for a top notch defensive prospect who is close to NHL ready.

It's officially over

As expected, the Bruins series ended promptly this year.  It was a comprehensive thrashing.    There's really not much else to say about it, other than that it shouldn't be all that surprising given the way they looked at the end the season in general; disorganized defensively, tentative, physically unassertive.

I wanted to believe the Flyers would shape up and return to midseason form after some inspired play against Buffalo, but that proved to be a temporary flash against an inferior opponent.

Quick season review:
What went right?
-Giroux emerged as the best player on the team.

-JVR took a big step forward, and should be a key player next year.

-The Meszaros transaction worked out great, being the team's best defense from start to finish this year.  He is signed for 3 more years at $4m per and looks to be the heir apparent to leading the defense as Pronger's and Timonen's ice time declines due to age.

-Bobrovsky showed a lot of promise, with his best hockey coming in November.  That said, I strongly believe his NHL game is not a finished product, and there's no way I'd enter next season with him as the undisputed number 1.

-Nodl's first half.

-The defense was much stronger 1-6, at least when the roster was healthy.

What went wrong?
-Pronger had a mediocre regular season, had injury problems, and essentially missed the end of the season and playoffs.  Honestly I didn't care too much about his regular season because he's a playoff player, but that didn't really work out this year, did it.

-Timonen had his worst season as a Flyer, particularly in the playoffs.  Along with Pronger, questions have to be asked how much their skills will diminish in the next season or two and if they are breaking down.  Timonen is 36 years old and said it himself that he only has so many season in his "stumpy legs."  Maybe he was just playing injured in the playoffs...we'll have to see.

-Richards had an uninspiring regular season, and a particularly disappointing playoffs.  I still say he was injured/out-of-shape.  I hope for his sake it was injured and not the latter.  There's also a lot of chatter about his lack of leadership, but I know nothing about what is really happening in "the room", so I can't speak to that.

-The Versteeg trade is looking like a real dud.  He played a little better in the playoffs, but never contributing in any significant way.  He will have to do better next year to earn the $3m cap hit, or the Flyers should start looking to remedy the mistake of acquiring him in the first place.

-Nodl's second half, the return of Andreas No-Goal.

-Goaltending was not good enough.  It was rendered irrelevant in the Boston series, but the Flyers eeked by a much inferior Buffalo team after what was, taken collectively, probably the worst goaltending performance in a playoff series I've ever seen.

-The power play was really bad, somewhat inexplicably so.

-The Hartnell-Briere-Leino line lost its mojo in the second half of the season.  For last year's playoffs and the first half this year, they were pretty easily the Flyers best 5v5 line, manufacturing scoring chances and pinning in the other team.  Just as an example, Leino's 6 points in 11 playoff games this year is a far cry from his 21 in 19 games last year.

-100 straight games without a shutout.  It's hard to pin down the exact reasons for this, but I say roughly 2/3rds goaltending and 1/3 poor defensive zone coverage and lapses.  Much of a shutout is solid defense combined with a flawless performance by a goalie.



There is really no clear path forward for the Flyers.  That's not to say they're all of a sudden a bad team, I just mean that management could go in several completely different directions.  The only move I think they HAVE to make is a meaningful solution in goal.  What they should do with the skaters however (and if they should shake up the lineup) is very subjective, but almost nothing is off the table.

Bruins Series Game 2 Review

My standing prediction for the game tonight was 3-2, but I wasn't sure who would be on right side of that scoreline. Apparently it was the Bruins.

Total gutpunch of a loss.  Great start, thrown away by flat-footed defense and soft second goal in the span of a minute and a half.  Bruins were good in the second period, but the Flyers onslaught was relentless in the third, setting franchise playoff records for most shots in a period and most shots in a game.  The longer the 3rd period carried on without a goal to show for it however, you knew the chances that the game would slip away from the Flyers would increase.

I'd like to say "wow, the Flyers played great, obviously they can come back on the Bruins."  More likely though, is that the Flyers were facing a must-win game, gave the Bruins their best shot, and still lost.

It's pretty indisputable that at least tonight, the chasm in goaltending between the teams cost the Flyers.  The Bruins put out one of the league's best, the Flyers a streaky career backup.  Good goaltending isn't often going to win or lose a series on its own, but when you have two good teams playing each other, which is essentially always the case in advanced round of the playoffs, it will decide series.

Even if goaltending incompetence does not directly cause a Flyers loss (like tonight), the simple fact is that the Flyers are have been vastly overmatched at the position and it makes the job that much harder for the rest of the team to win. You can't expect the Flyers to score 4 goals every night against good teams.

Still clinging to some hope, but things look pretty bleak from where I sit.

Notes and other deep thoughts:
-Great game for Thomas (52 saves!!  22 in the 3rd period!), but you can't ignore how much more effective the Bruins defense was at preventing rebound chances---something the Flyers have done pitifully this series.

-Was there any doubt the JVR was the best player on the ice?  The guy was everywhere.  They flashed a stat on the broadcast, that after 9 playoff game JVR has the 2nd most all-time shots, only trailing Alex Ovechkin in 2009.  Oh yeah, he has 7 goals too, though at some points it looked like he might get 7 tonight alone.  He's doing the same power move over and over, but with his combination of size and skating, no defensemen seems to be able to do damn thing to stop him in one-on-one situations.

-No Pronger.  Bad back?  Bad hamstring?  Who knows.  Neither of those injuries are ones that tend to get better overnight.

-Carter is nowhere to be found at practices.  Do the Flyers try to rush him back now?

-The Flyers continue to have trouble rounding out the 4th line.  Shelley only played a few minutes and took a foolish penalty.  Who knows who we'll see in the lineup for game 3 in that slot.

-Do the Flyers change goalies again?  Not that Boucher was remarkably bad, but do you give the team another kick in the butt?  Probably not, but who knows with this squad.

Round 2 Cometh

First some quick picks;
-Vancouver in 6.  I think Vancouver showed themselves to be the team to beat in the regular season.  #1 in goals, #1 in goals against, #1 powerplay, #2 penalty kill.  Vezina candidate in net.  Nashville can't match up with that and Vancouver will relax a little after barely beating Chicago.

-Detroit in 7.  It's perennial winner Detroit versus perennial playoff loser San Jose.  I don't see the need to make it much more complicated.

-Washington in 5.  Tampa did well to come back from 3-1,  but Washington is much more dangerous than Pittsburgh minus Malkin and Crosby.  Washington seems to be figuring out this playoff thing too.

Flyers v Boston
This is definitely the hardest series to pick.  The teams are relatively even, though I think the Flyers can raise their game to a level that no team in the east can match.  The Flyers showed a resemblance to that team in game 7 versus Buffalo, but who knows against Boston.

The Flyers mostly imposed their will on Buffalo defense, and the series was kept close due to 2 Miller shutouts and awful Flyers goaltending.  A repeat of that goaltending and Boston will win relatively easily.  Also the Bruins' defense is much stronger than Buffalo's so the Flyers won't be able to forecheck at will.  I will predict however, that Pronger plays more and more, and the Flyers PP continues its momentum from the end of the Buffalo series.

Another thing to watch for is Carter.  Carter left game 4 (April 20) with a knee injury.  The Flyers have said nothing about his status, but a report that he suffered a MCL sprain and is out 10-14 days sounded plausible so I'll run with that.  Game one of the Boston series would mark 10 days from the injury, but I don't think Carter has practiced yet.  I think there's a good chance Carter could return for game 3 (14 days) or game 4 (16 days) though.

It's impossible to predict how the Flyers goaltending will perform, but I am going to be an optimist and say that it won't shoot them in the foot, and the Flyers will perform near their game 7 against Buffalo level.

At the end of the season the Flyers kept saying they have been waiting all season for the playoffs start.  Well here they are in round 2, looking to build some momentum.  Pronger is back, goaltending is settled--time to see if there was something behind all that talk because this is it.

Flyers in 7.

Buffalo Series Game 7 Review

Last night showed, that when you strip away all the nonsense about Pronger injuries and shocking goaltending, the Flyers are a much better team than the Sabres.  The Flyers jumped all over the Sabres, who almost survived until Miller let in an awful goal.  I guess that would make terrible goals allowed ~9-1 this series?

Outside of Game 1, in which I thought the Sabres did very well to keep the Flyers out of dangerous scoring areas, the Sabres haven't been able to slow down the Flyers attack.  This series went seven games based another shutout win on the back of Miller, and the worst goaltending you will see this time of year.

The one other big difference last night was blocked shots.  I don't have the statistics, but through the first 25 minutes of the game the Flyers blocked a ton of shots, protecting Boucher.  That is the kind of effort they will have to replicate against stronger competition.

Observations and other deep thoughts:

-I've ragged on Coburn a bit, but when push comes to shove he's a trusted defensemen.  He covered a lot of ground in game 6, and has one of the best all-around games among the flyers defensemen.

-Good first period from Richards, driving the net.  Skated less as the game went on.  I still say something is up with him physically, but he will battle and hopefully get healthier.

-Encouraging to see Pronger play meaningful minutes, though the fact the Flyers still dressed Syrvet (only to play 19 seconds) means they're keeping an eye on his still-mending health.  And did I see a note that Pronger went up the tunnel with <1 minute left in the game, and thus missed the handshake?  Not sure on that one, but would be kind of bush league if that's what happened.

-One more goal each for JVR and Briere.  

-Zherdev is trying, but you can tell the way he kind of haphazardly throws himself he has no idea how to throw a check.  Either way, earning his keep in the lineup and at this rate he'll bag a goal or two.

-No, I did not think the Flyers were going to get their first SO last night, even when it was 4-0 in the 3rd.

-I thought the Flyers power play hit a turning point in game 5, and last night took another step, as the Flyers power play looked like a real threat.  Pronger helps, but I also like moving Richards back and JVR to the front.

-Felt like "old' times with the Leino-Briere-Hartnell line, pinning the Sabres in their own end on many shifts.

-Leighton has fallen off the face of the earth apparently, and there was even a rumor (which Holmgren denied--big surprise) that Leighton had gone AWOL from the team after being pulled from game 6.  Not much makes sense to me.  Leighton has been a good a soldier, so I don't see why he would bolt after being rightfully pulled from game 6.  On the other hand, the Flyers handling on Leighton has been strange, sending to the minors for all those months, recalling him but not playing him in the regular season, then giving him a playoff start, then being the number 4 goalie the next day?  It's all hard to make sense of.  Either way, his chances of returning to the net these playoffs are basically zero, and we'll leave it at that.

Buffalo Series Game 6 Review

For the 3rd time in 6 playoff games (and 4th in 7 overall), the Flyers' starting goalie turned in an embarrassing performance.  Miraculously, the Flyers are 3-1 in those games, and 1-2 in games where they get decent goaltending.  Go figure.  This team's ability to come back from any score is nothing short of remarkable.

Either way, the Flyers skaters are beginning to resemble the team that was tops of the NHL in January.  Clearly they aren't playing their best, but they look somewhat recognizable to that January team, and their quality over the Sabres is beginning to show.  It's kind of unfair to judge when the Flyers are always chasing the game after an early deficit, but if you put an average goaltender in net for each team last night and didn't change anything else, that game would've been 5-0 Flyers by the midway point.

To their credit however, after being gifted goals, the Sabres usually can put together 5 or 10 minutes of solid play once the Flyers have arduously climbed back to tie the score.  With the Flyers goaltending this series, 10 minutes of solid play often equals 2 goals.

For all the crap the Flyers have been through, the series in their hands.  Game 7, at home, and no arguments about who should be in net.  I am under no delusions about Boucher---he is a career backup NHL goalie who runs very hot and very cold.  Still, I think it is pretty well settled that this is best the Flyers can do in net this year, and this is their team, for better or worse.

I'll be there tomorrow, and I am very optimistic of Flyers victory.

Comments and other deep thoughts:
-Pronger only played 4:33, all on the PP.  It's an awkward arrangement, considering all anyone has been talking about how his bad hand would limit his ability to shoot, yet there he was on the point on the power play.  Clearly the team was more concerned about his hand holding up in all the physical battles of actually defending in 5-on-5 play, yet they put him in front of the net to jostle of the 5-on-3 PP.  I'll have to keep an eye on twitter today to see how Pronger practices today.  (Bear in mind that, reportedly, Pronger was very angry the day before game 6, and wouldn't even talk to his teammates, which they took as a sign he wouldn't play at all)

-So I slightly jumped the gun on Richards, saying it was time to stop hoping he would miraculously look like the Richards of previous years.  He played his best game of the series last night, being in the thick of things where he is most effective.  His skills aren't high-end enough to drift around the outside and have a big impact (few guys' are).

-The Sabres are saying Richards got away with "mass murder" by boarding Connolly, and Ruff says he should be suspended.  Let me translate that for you: "Please suspend the Flyers captain for game 7, or at least give us a borderline call or two."  I don't know, I seem to recall Ruff saying something about the Flyers whining the other day?  And generally, it's not "getting away" with anything if you are penalized on the play.  It was a clear penalty on Richards, but suspension?  Give me a break.

-Briere, 5 goals in 6 games.  Enough said.  Briere's and JVR's performances this series are beyond reproach.

Buffalo Series Game 4

Buffalo came out strong, but offered little in the 2nd half of the game.  The only reason the got a shutout was Ryan Miller's big performance (this was much more a Miller-earned shutout than game 1).  All tied up, series could go either way but Flyers have to happy overall with their performances these last 3 games.  If Boucher performs like last night and everything else holds steady, the Flyers will very likely win the series.

Notes:
-Buffalo is getting away with a ton of crap after the whistle.  Nearly every time Miller freezes the puck, if a Flyers is around he gets punched or dropped, and the refs haven't called them for any of it.  The Sabres are walking a fine line, but it certainly looks to me like that is part of their intentional plan.  Pronger probably can't wait to get back in the middle of such shenanigans, as he is the king of it all.

-Speaking of Pronger, the natural assumption is the Pronger will play game 5 with the series tied, whereas he probably would've sat again if it was 3-1 Flyers.  Might not play on the PP though with his bad hand rendering him unable to shoot.

-Didn't look like much, but the fact that Carter didn't return is very bad news.  He hasn't done all that much, but he was the teams leading goal scorer and his size, speed and shot always gives the other team something to think about.

-Does anything really need to be said about Richards' 5-minute elbowing penalty?  Simply ridiculous to give a 5 minute major for that.  Compare it to Kunitz's brutal elbow the other night which was only worth 2 minutes.

I'm glad the officials feel the need to protect poor Kaleta, who is a real saint out there and would never do anything to intentionally hurt another player;

Game 2 Review

A wild game yesterday, with the Flyers coming out on the right side in the end. Hard to read too much into a game like yesterday with the first period being all over the place, and the rest of the game being a never ending stream of powerplays. Still, I thought it was a better effort from the Flyers. In my opinion, Miller did not play appreciably worse than game 1, where so many wanted to say he stole the game with 35 saves, yet the Flyers hit 5 goals and it wasn't just a lucky afternoon.

Comments;

Goaltending

The obvious question, though I don't think it's really a question anymore; Bobrovsky cannot start game 3.

Okay, I admit I'm a little biased. About a month ago I decided I would go with Boucher for the playoffs. Recent events have made Boucher the obvious choice for game 3, and I just can't see how starting Bobrovsky for game 3 is a defensible position.

Subjectively, Bobrovsky still has some obvious flaws in his game that he hasn't been able to meaningfully address this season. Foremost among them is discomfort with the puck around the net and goalline, and getting small on long shots (I've been beating these horses for a while). Those traits were on full display on the goals 2 and 3 yesterday respectively. Goal 2 in particular was badly misplayed by Bobrovsky, flailing in the crease instead of simply holding the post. Now the Flyers weren't exactly on lockdown for any of the three goals, but Bobrovsky looked completely out of sorts on all of them, and flopping around like a fish on the first goal which is something new for him. Right now, Bobrovsky has lost his way.

Objectively, the numbers are stunning. Bobrovsky has started 7 consecutive games, and has won zero with a .889 save percentage. Let me say that again--DURING THE MOST IMPORTANT STRETCH OF THE SEASON, BOBROVSKY HAS STARTED 7 CONSECUTIVE GAMES AND WON NONE. Even more distressing, in each of the two virtual must-win games for the Flyers (finale versus Islanders and game 2 against Sabres) Bobrovsky was pulled 12 minutes into the game after giving up 3 goals and looking lost. It is somewhat miraculous that Boucher has come into both of those and gotten the win.

I can't blame Laviolette for picking his guy and giving him the keys to the team. However Bobrovsky is not winning and is losing his way. In picking the Sabres to win the series in 7, I stated that I did not think Bob was capable of carrying the load, and worried that by the time Laviolette was ready to take him out, it would be too late.

Well, here is the moment of truth. Bobrovsky may have proven to be level-headed and resilient this season, but this is not just a matter of Bobrovsky bouncing back after a bad game. Bobrovsky is struggling badly and has been disastrous in 2 of his last 3 outings, yet the series is still 1-1. What will Laviolette do? For me the choice is easy. Granted, other writers are making the argument he should stay in, so who knows what will happen. I do have to say though, I find many those arguments completely misguided and unconvincing.

Richards

I'm beginning to think Richards is either sick, injured, or out-of-shape. He can't keep up with the pace of his teammates right now, and is constantly a step slow. He's not been much of a factor thus far.

Carter

Not much better than Richards, though showing less obvious signs of ailing. Just been a nonfactor, plain and simple.

JVR

Arguably the Flyers best forward thus far. He's made real nice strides this season, though maybe not the giant leap Giroux made last year in the playoffs.

Giroux

Speaking of Giroux, he has undoubtedly established himself as the offensive leader of this team. He even had the two biggest hits of the game for the Flyers last night. During the broadcast, the announcers said that, when asked who was the most competitive guy on the team, Briere answered Giroux. It's showing.

Versteeg

I haven't been impressed with Versteeg overall, but he was better last night.

Power play

Still awful. Thankfully the Flyers got one powerplay goal, but they were still 1-10 overall, including two embarrassing lengthy 5-on-3s. I think if the Flyers blew all those second period PPs and didn't score on any of them, they probably would've lost the game yesterday. Maybe getting Pronger back would help?

Pronger

Looks like Pronger won't be back for game 3, and who knows beyond? Even when he does come back, will he be as dangerous on the PP with his bad hand affecting his shot? Tomorrow will be 2.5 weeks since his "setback". Was his setbreak re-breaking his hand? Considering that he's still not shooting on it, yet was shooting on it 9 days after surgery last month, I think that's a real possibility.

GO TIME

The time has come. Will the Flyers "wake up" or "flip the switch"?

I have my doubts. It's not just a matte of desire. Your powerplay doesn't get more organized overnight. Bobrovsky's not going to make strides in his overall game this week that he hasn't been able to make in the last 7 months.

On paper, there is no doubt in my mind the Flyers are clearly superior. But Pronger looks to miss at least one game, Richards is sick, and who knows what else is going on. I think for me it's going to come down to 2 things; 1) the Flyers goaltending, 2) and the Flyers skating.

The Flyers quality of play is no longer superior enough such that they can withstand a bad goal or two and win. There won't be much margin of error for Bobrovsky, and I suspect if Bob struggles, by the time Laviolette gives up on him and brings in Boucher or Leighton it will be too late.

As for skaters, I want to see the Flyers drive their legs with the puck. The Flyers have become masters of the pull-up and stop play, looking for the pass. It's one thing for a guy like Leino who's game is based on that, but most players on the Flyers roster are far more effective when the legs are churning and they're going to the net. Hesitation and coasting will kill the Flyers in this series.

This could go either way, but right now I have to say the Sabres in 7.

Let's go Flyers, prove me wrong!!

Not Good News on Pronger

There have been some rumors floating around about Pronger not being ready for the start of the playoffs, but I wasn't sure what to make of them and chose to be optimistic.

Given that Pronger is not practicing today, and that the Flyers put Matt Walker on re-entry waivers today, maybe the word that game 5 or game 6 is a "optimistic" return date is accurate.

Let's recap this mess;

-March 10, Pronger misses game with "upper body injury"

-March 12, Pronger gets wrist brace, then cast. Sits in press box with Homer for first time ever (according to Panaccio). Homer says he is day-to-day.

-March 14, Pronger doesn't shoot in practice.

-March 15, surgery, goes well, out 3-4 weeks.

-March 17, Pronger says he feels better, wants to get in a few games before playoffs (which start April 14)

-March 21, Pronger practices, no passing or shooting.

-March 23, Pronger in yellow caution jersey at practice

-March 24, Pronger "taking hard shots", 9 days after surgery.

-March 25, Pronger admits "overdoing with shots this week," has some pain.

-March 31, "setback", doubtful for regular season games.

-April 7, teammates says they expect him to be ready for playoffs.

It's hard to know what happened between March 25 and March 31, but taking slapshots on a broken hand less than 1.5 weeks into a 3-4 week recovery period was incredibly stupid. Is there anything more stressful on a broken hand than slapshots? If he misses playoff time (which is looking likely), the Flyers only have themselves to blame for being stupid.

Division Clinched

It was by the skin of their teeth, but the Flyers clinched the division for the first time in 6 years last night.

A playoff atmosphere at the arena last night and a perfect start before the Flyers found themselves down 4-3. I guess the Flyers should just take the win and move on. Very fitting however, that the line of Leino-Briere-Hartnell plus 4 points from Andrei Meszaros carried the day. Those are the guys that have been there doing it all regular season, and it wasn't Richards or Carter or came through with the big plays when the team needed them today.

So now that the Flyers are in the playoffs, the Flyers have about 4 days to answer some questions.

The issues;

-Zherdev. This one's pretty easy--he stays in the lineup. As long as he's not hurting the team with turnovers or bad penalties or the like, the team could use his stick skills and shooting.

-Briere. Seems to be healthy. Thank god.

-Richards & Carter. No injuries this year, time for Carter to be a go-to scorer in the playoffs. It hasn't been a terribly impressive regular season for Richards, but he should turn it up in the playoffs.

-Pronger. No way to really know what's going on with his injury, but I'd very surprised if he doesn't play in game 1 of the playoffs (with significant minutes).

-Power play. Still looking pretty scattershot.

-Goalies. Alas, the million dollar question, as it has been all season.

So, Goalies

All the indications the past few weeks were that Bobrovsky was Laviolette's guy, and he confirmed as much this week. A while back I decided that my preference was Boucher.

I see Bobrovsky and I see a goalie who hasn't figured it out yet. Regardless of what he is capable of long term, right now I see 3 major holes; 1) gets small and scrunchy on long shots, 2) has developed a disturbing tendency to have a gaping five hole when moving laterally on breakaways, and most importantly, 3) still loses track of the puck often and is caught unaware with traffic and when the puck is jammed in around the crease. The way he was pulled yesterday was very ugly for a goalie who is supposed to carry the load in the playoffs. Honestly, it reminds me of 1997, when in the final game of the season, Hextall was pulled after giving up 4 goals, and the team rallied behind Snow paving the way for Snow in the playoffs.

Given my lack of faith in Bobrovsky, is Boucher any better? Maybe, maybe not. I think if Boucher can stay 'quiet' in the crease, he's the better option. He's not really much more than a mediocre NHL goalie, but he should be mostly reliable.

Honestly I kind of wish Leighton had gotten a game, but I suppose Laviolette was trying to give the keys to his guy, and the Flyers had no breathing room to give Leighton a trial game anyway. Truthfully Leighton is just another not-quite-good-enough goalie on the Flyers payroll, but I do think his play the last few months of last season was better than what Boucher and Bobrovsky are providing right now.

Also, for anyone keeping score, Ray Emery was called up by the Ducks last month and finished the season 7-2 with a 926 save percentage. So much for the Emery as a low-risk high-reward signing, but it's hard to blame the Flyers for not carrying 4 NHL goalies in their ranks.

No matter who's in net, the Flyers inability to lock it down (read, the only NHL team without a shutout this year), is likely going to be their doom this year.

Crunch Time

The playoff nominally start in approximately 7 days, but the Flyers may as well already be in the playoffs with their slim 1 point lead on the Pens. Time to get stuff in order, period.

First, after Leighton cleared waivers yesterday, Laviolette took the unusual step (for him) to announce Bobrovsky was starting tonight and will start in the playoffs. Not surprising that Bob is the guy, but Holmgren said he wanted Leighton to play Friday or Saturday, which may not happen now. As I said yesterday, it seems odd to me that the Flyers would expose Leighton to waivers now for him to be an undressed 3rd goalie. Or maybe they had to do it now? Goaltending hasn't really been the problem, but I wouldn't rule out doing something drastic to shake things up if the Flyers continue to slowly sink.

Second, Holmgren apparently laid down law on the team in a private meeting. Per Tim Panaccio:

tpanotch Tim Panaccio

Hartnell: “Paul Holmgren can be a scary guy,” said Scott Hartnell. “Especially, when he gives you that look.”

tpanotch Tim Panaccio

Peter Laviolette thought Holmgren's message/address to the team was constructive and well-received

tpanotch Tim Panaccio

Flyers say GM HOLMGREN address to them yesterday was a bit scary. Intimidating ...some said

LOL. It's not as simple as yelling and deciding to play harder all of a sudden, but I don't think it could hurt.

Third, there are the injuries. Briere partially practiced yesterday, though his status for tonight is unclear. No signs of Pronger, but you have to think he'll be ready for actual playoff games. Betts is also out.

The time for excuses is over. Time for Richards to get in playoff form. Carter needs to prove he can score in the playoffs. Versteeg needs to find his niche on this team. Can JVR be more of a factor this year?

Leighton!!

Actual news! The Flyers called up Michael Leighton today.

Leighton will have to clear re-entry waivers to re-join the team. The basic facts regarding the Leighton situation:

-He is due to earn $1.6 million next year, and under the terms of re-entry waivers, any team that claims him is only on the hook for half his salary ($800k).

-Any team that claims Leighton cannot play him this season or playoffs however.

-If Leighton is claimed, the Flyers will carry half of his salary on their cap next year ($800k).

So will he be claimed? Leighton cleared waivers a few months ago to get down to the minors, but things have changed since then;

-Leighton's health was still a little unclear at the time

-Any team claiming Leighton would have been claiming him at a salary of $1.6 million, not $800k.

-Leighton has been playing pretty well in the AHL (2 straight shutouts, 8-2 in last 10 games for a terrible team).

-Teams have no need to add a third goalie midseason, but might be looking for a bargain backup for next season.

So what's the end result? Darren Dreger says:

The Flyers have lived without Leighton all season, at half price, based on feedback around the NHL, he's likely getting claimed on re-entry.

I'll just say it's a 50/50 shot he gets claimed. If he is not claimed, Holmgren says he will play this weekend.

The last question is, why now? One game from Leighton is not going to change Bobrovsky's hold on the starting job for the playoffs. Maybe if they had called up Leighton 6 weeks ago he could've stolen the job, but Bobrovsky has been pretty good recently. I guess if I were Brian Boucher I would not be feeling the love right now--it doesn't make sense for the Flyers to expose Leighton to waivers and an empty cap-hit for next season for him to be a third goalie who doesn't dress for games.

Of course the other issue is that the Flyers are in freefall, so it may not matter who's in net. Last night's 5-2 loss to one of the worst teams in the league with crucial points on the line was pathetic. The Flyers look like they've forgotten how to play hockey. I wouldn't simply say it's just plain lack of effort, but they seem to lack purpose and clarity in their play.

It's always been the case with guys like Richards and Pronger that their season is basically going to be judged on their playoff performance, but it's looking like it will be too much to ask to expect a meaningful sudden turnaround for this team before the playoffs start next week.

GMs Lay Down the Law

Right on the heels of Bettman's 5 points, the NHL GMs remind everyone of who are the real gatekeepers for change in the league. Bettman is no Woodrow Wilson I suppose.

The three main points are 1) there will be no ban on all contact to the head, 2) stricter enforcement will be applied to charging and boarding, and 3) longer suspensions for headshots, with much longer suspensions for repeat offenders.

I think as a whole this shows the GMs clinging to an old school attitude of "keep your head up" and that the puck carrier still carries a lot of responsibility if he gets clobbered. Particularly if you look at point 3--it's almost as if the NHL is saying headshots are still hockey plays for which we can only half-heartedly go after offenders, and it's only when someone does it over and over that we are going to take a stand.

Apparently, boarding penalties are up this year statistically. I couldn't pinpoint why that is happening, and I hope this increased vigilance on boarding is more in response to that statistic rather than appeasement to the furor over the Chara hit. I say that because I think it would be very narrow-minded to focus rule changes on a rare circumstance because of public outcry in Montreal, while ignoring the all-too common plays that repeatedly cause injury. Total cop-out.

The only thing that could prove to be interesting from this is the expanded use of a charging penalty. The existing rule;

42.1 Charging - A minor or major penalty shall be imposed on a player who skates or jumps into, or charges an opponent in any manner. Charging shall mean the actions of a player who, as a result of distance traveled, shall violently check an opponent in any manner. A 'charge' may be the result of a check into the boards, into the goal frame or in open ice.

Could expanded use of the charging penalty ultimately include unnecessarily predatory hits to the head? There's probably too much grey area there in the end, though Bettman's blue-ribbon committee is supposed to look into it and maybe they'll come up with something worthwhile.

It is somewhat curious to me however that the GMs are relatively open to cracking down on boardings because of the threat to injury and vulnerability of the puck carrier even when a lot of boards are a "hockey play" gone wrong at the last moment, yet the GMs staunchly defend a shoulder to the head as a valid "hockey play". I'm sure they would say a shove from behind to the boards was always dishonorable, while a open-ice hit is just hard play, and if it results in a headshot so be it. I'm not convinced.

We won't get a substantial change on this issue until a strong leader emerges on the issue, and it's certainly won't be Bettman. FWIW, Jim Rutherford, Hurricanes GM, on a ban on all headshots; "We may get to that point, but I'm satisfied with what we've done here this week."

Also of note, the GMs voted 24-6 that the Chara hit on Pacioretty didn't call for supplementary discipline.

Back to the Flyers

A win is a win yesterday for the Flyers. Not the prettiest performance but the Flyers yielded very few scoring chances against, which will get you points more often that not. Probably not a bad idea for Laviolette to shake up the lines too.

Other thoughts;

-I'm really leaning towards Boucher for the playoffs at this point. He has been pretty good, and more in control than he was last year. Also, with Bob I feel there will inevitably be one 10 minute stretch where he lets in some bad goals.

-There was some talk after the game about Pronger's absence meaning the dressing room will be much quieter. Maybe that's not a bad thing right now. Laviolette has definitely been quieter too recently too after losses. Honestly Pronger hasn't been very good this year. If his name wasn't Pronger and he didn't have such a history of playoff success, a lot more questions would be asked of him. As it is, just wait until the playoffs to see what he does then.

-The Flyers have 7 out of a possible 8 points in their last 4 games. Would be nice to blowing out bad teams, but dominance over bad teams in the regular season isn't too great an indicator of success against good teams and in the playoffs (ask the Caps).

Today

Some topics in Flyerdom;

-The Flyers allegedly played a game on Saturday night, though I still can't confirm they actually showed up and played. Kidding aside, it was good to see Leino get a hat trick. He's been laboring since a mid-February groin injury, and his line has been in the tank since. Hopefully he is getting healthy again. Since missing a game February 16, Leino had only 3 points and was -4 over the next 10 games. He previously had been one of the best +/- players in the league, and the fact that his whole line fell apart at the time underscores how valuable he has been to the team all year.

-Pronger is having surgery today and is out 3-4 weeks. No word on if Pronger verbally attacked his hand for being unreliable and quitting on him in the locker room after the Atlanta game. A full four week recovery would have him returning simultaneously with the start of the playoffs.

Bettman's 5 point plan

Gary Bettman released a 5-point plan to address concussions, as seen here. Briefly, I feel like it's mostly PR, though maybe the idea of penalizing coaches and players can have some positive effects.

Stiff seemless glass doesn't help, but most concussions are a result of open ice hits away from the glass. Also, the idea of reviewing rink safety certainly isn't a bad idea (and probably should be done anyway), but to imply that rink safety is a leading factor in concussions in the NHL is a total sideshow.

None of the points directly address the real cause of the vast majority of concussions--the conduct and actions of players on the ice. That's somewhat understandable to the extent that you can't make a sea change at this point of the season, and hopefully the blue ribbon committee will be progressive and make an impression on the real arbiters of rule changes in the league, the GMs.

IMO, the only meaningful way to reduce head injuries in the NHL is if the players stop playing search and destroy and the ice and being opportunistic on really clearing out a guy with a high hit. That respect could even extend to plays like the infamous Chara-Pacioretty incident where the players know where they are on the ice and adjust their actions accordingly (it almost feels like Pacioretty and Chara were playing chicken on who would flinch first and give space). It appears that the only way that will happen is for significant suspensions to happen frequently until the players change their actions, and I'm not holding my breath on that one.